I see you know how to turn the Weber into a smoker. Just out of curiosity, what did you put in your drip pan? Personally, I like to use Apple Cider in mine.

I have my own wood smoker, actually, and yes, I did smoke a turkey in it again this year. I had to cook it all night long, and it was raining and I overcompensated for the chilly temps and made the fire hotter, thus overcooking the bird somewhat, but it came out tasty nonetheless. Just tougher than I like.

I don't like duck, but I BBQ'd some duck once. That was a near disaster. I figured if I put enough seasoning on them and cooked them longer, I could cook the gaminess out of them. It worked, but the end result was duck jerky. Not what I had intended, although my son said it was very good jerky.

I didn't put anything in the drip pan. ??? It only took about 2 1/2 hours. I put apple wood chips on the briquets every time I basted, every 30 minutes. But nothing in the drip pan. How would I have saved the drippings?

Yuck. Save the drippings? They are unusable so I just throw them out, but they impart a hint of taste (apple in my case) of whatever is in the pan. You can use anything you like. I've even used beer and Dr. Pepper depending on what I am smoking.

Correction: The four game hens took 90 minutes in the Weber; it was the 7-pound turkey breast I did (pecan smoke there) that took 2 1/2 hours -- and it wad the turkey drippings I saved for the gravy, actually, not the chicken.)

About Me

A Yankee editor friend called me an "erudite redneck." That about sums it up. WHAT I'M READING .....
GORE VIDAL, "Perpetual War for Perpetual Peace: How We Got to Be So Hated" (New York: Thunder's Mouth, 2002).
NIKOS KAZANTZAKIS, "The Last Temptation of Christ" (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1960).